SAN ANTONIO – KSAT 12's Tiffany Huertas sat down with Univision Network News anchor Jorge Ramos as he made a stop at the San Antonio Book Festival this weekend.
Ramos said he has a responsibility to report the truth and most importantly question those who are in power. He spent more than 30 years reporting on different issues, including hate.
"Hate is contagious," he said. "The number of hate groups in the United States has increased in the last few years."
Ramos explained how he experienced hate during a news conference with then-presidential candidate Donald Trump.
“When I was ejected from the press conference, candidate Trump told me, 'Go back to Univision.' He basically said go back to Mexico, and just a few seconds later, one of his supporters told me, 'Get out of my country,' Hate is contagious. If the president is saying, is making, racist remarks, other Americans are going to do exactly the same," Ramos said.
Ramos recently published a book called "Stranger: The Challenge of a Latino Immigrant in the Trump Era," where he details what it means to be an immigrant in the present day.
“Right now, it's a really difficult time to be a Latino and to be an immigrant," Ramos said. "When the president of the United States says that Mexican-Americans are criminals and terrorists and rapists, he’s wrong. He’s lying."
Ramos believes there needs to be comprehensive immigration reform.
"Not only to help the 'Dreamers,' but we need to help the 11 million people who are here undocumented," he said.
As Ramos continues holding those in power accountable, he said journalists across the country must do the same.
"In an era of fake news, people instantly choose those reporters who have credibility. If a company is forcing you to say something or if a company is forcing you to take a specific ideological position, it is impossible to be credible and it is impossible to be independent," Ramos said.